This was another recommendation from the folks who suggested The Berry Pickers. Of all their recommendations, all of which fall in the “mainstream” category, this was my least favourite – not terrible, just okay.
Set primarily in the turbulent 50s and 60s Iran, we meet Ellie and Homa, schoolmates and friends from different backgrounds. Ellie was born into privilege, and meets Homa, a girl with poorer circumstances that Ellie only meets because of a brief disruption in her own life with the death of her father. As young adults, Ellie causes a significant upset to Homa’s life, and then leaves Iran for America without any mea culpa. Decades later, Ellie is drawn to reexamine that period of her life, to make some apology and bring closure to the two friends.
The story was somewhat ordinary and predictable – the central secret being revealed very early on, clearly telegraphing the main crisis to come – and the writing style was declarative and descriptive, much more tell than show, and while this worked well for the cooking and food pieces, it took away from the potentially exotic and lyrical setting and the development of the girls’ relationship. The choice to make Ellie the protagonist was obvious but disappointing, as Homa was clearly the more interesting and sympathetic character.
Overall, this is a classic beach-read, grocery-check-out book (see also The Goldfinch). While interesting enough, it isn’t especially well written or engaging, with a weak protagonist and predictable story.
Fate: off to the little book library.
8 – female author
13 – set somewhere I’ve never been
17 – a place name in the title
25 – new author to me
rclr 
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